We figured that the next iPhone would be released some time in the fall, and then it looked like we narrowed it down to September. Now, there is further evidence that the iPhone 5 release date will be September, thanks to an employee announcement from Verizon Wireless. You see, they blacked out vacation requests for the period covering September 21 to September 30.

Normally, the reason why they would black out vacation requests is that they expect that period of time to be particularly busy. It’s not out of the ordinary to see blackout periods for Black Friday or for during the Christmas shopping season. So, why would they black out a little over a week toward the end of September? It has to be the new iPhone, right?

All staff at all of Verizon’s retail stores have been banned from taking vacation from September 21 to September 30, calling for “all hands on deck” during that time. Naturally, Verizon wants to make sure that their stores are suitably staffed for the onslaught of iFans wanting to get their hands on the newest iPhone. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if AT&T has launched similar efforts for the same time.

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This is completely in line with current rumors that point toward a September launch and it’s not uncommon for Apple to release a product within a couple of weeks of officially unveiling it to the world. What we’re hearing is that pre-orders on the so-called iPhone 5 (even if it’s technically the sixth-generation iPhone) will start on reveal day, September 12. Among the countries that are expected to be in the first wave of shipments are Canada, the United States, Japan and Germany, though none of that has been technically confirmed jsut yet.

In case you’ve been living under a rock, a lot of specs and features for the new iPhone have already been leaked. We’re expecting to see a display in the 4-inch range with a 640×1136 pixel resolution, a smaller 9-pin dock connector, a centered FaceTime camera, 4G LTE support, a thinner profile, and a two-toned unibody design. There’s probably a quad core Apple A6 processor in there too, possibly based on the Samsung Exynos chipset.

Of course, these are all just rumored specs for the time being and Tim Cook might have a few surprise tricks up his iSleeve.

[Source]

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This comes by way of AllThingsD.com, a tech blog that falls under the News Corp. umbrella… and you know how good those guys are at digging through voicemails their sources to get at the heart of a matter. This is in stark contrast to most other reports that are saying the next iPhone will be released in September, just in time for the back to school rush. The increase in staff seemed to support that notion too.

As far as the rest of the rumors go, they’re all over the map. Some say that Apple will stick with the current 3.5-inch Retina Display. Others say it’ll get bumped to 3.7-inches and others still are pointing toward a 4.0-inch display. We’ve seen all kinds of leaked cases that indicate major, minor, and no changes to the overall form factor and design. We’ve seen some with tapered shapes and others with the same block shape as the iPhone 4.  The most interesting of the recent iPhone 5 images from Gizmodo shows a mashup of the iPhone 3GS beveled edges with the unibody design of the iPhone 4; they’re so sure about it that Jesus Diaz has gone and made a bet.

And so, as is the case with all things Apple, we’re still in the relative dark about what to expect out of the iPhone 5. Steve, can you kindly put all these rumors to rest and just cross the stage in a black turtleneck sooner rather than later?

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All the stars are starting to align themselves. We had heard for some time that Apple would wait until September to release the successor to the current iPhone 4 and now we’ve got some more evidence that backs up the timeframe. The newest report says that Apple’s manufacturing partners are going to start assembling the next-gen iPhone around the middle of August.

If that’s the case, it’s likely that Steve Jobs will waltz across the stage and a special event near the end of August, revealing that the iPhone 4S will be made available through a carrier near you at the end of September. At least, that’s the hope, assuming it doesn’t hit some unfortunate delays like the white iPhone 4. The manufacturing partners are expected to “ramp aggressively,” so they hope to have enough stock for a September launch window.

At this point, it’s still unclear whether we’ll be getting an iPhone 4S or a true iPhone 5. It might have the same form factor as the iPhone 4 (but with the iPad’s A5 processor) or they might offer a new shell for an iPhone 5 giving it a larger screen. Who knows?

On a side, semi-related note, Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty is saying that Apple is working on a branded TV product. A real Apple TV “could add $19 billion and $4.50 of annual revenue and EPS longer-term.”

Photo: T3

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